Kata Rokkar — Kata Rokkar – A Bay Area based blog about music, life and stuff by Shawn Robbins.

Archives: Noise Pop Festival 2012

Oh shit! I found this post queued and realized it never posted! Well, last month Noise Pop closed the 20th Anniversary of their ongoing and much beloved festival with a dynamite set by The Dodos which started out with a somber dedication to former touring bandmate Christopher Reimer (also known as the guitarist for noise-rock band Women), who passed away earlier last month. The song? A cover of Tea Lights by Lower Dens, which turned out to be Chris’ favorite song. The rest of the set was explosive, passionate, and a tribute to the true fans and supporters of this bombastic indie-pop duo. It was a worthy close to a fine hometown festival.

Upon entering Bimbo’s 365 aka San Francisco’s classiest venue, I could tell that Atlas Sound (the solo project of Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox) had its own diverse audience. I did not expect so many teens and pre-teens to be attending this unusual showcase. I guess I’ve underestimated Bradford’s reach when it comes to grabbing a Read the full article

It’s Day 3 of Noise Pop Music Festival and I’m not yet feeling tired of the nonstop musical onslaught that has descended on this fair city of mine. Thursday found me at the Bottom of the Hill with local superstars John Vanderslice and Thao Nyguen with local unknowns Garrett Pierce and Bird by Snow. First off, I love the vibe of a Vanderslice show; it’s always very positive, non-pretentious, and welcome. So naturally I already knew what to expect from the headliners.

I’ll admit, I was torn this day. As a fan of Cursive, it was a tough decision to turn down seeing the band perform that night and see Grimes at the Rickshaw Stop. Also I’d heard many flattering things about Austin’s Ume (who was opening for Cursive that night) and her full-on rock onslaught. So my decision came down to who I hadn’t seen yet, and while I’ve seen Cursive and Tim Kasher a few times already, I couldn’t pass up seeing the Rickshaw Stop’s impressive line-up of psychedelic electro-freak acts. The Bay’s own Yalls, the theatrical Born Gold, the mysterious oOoOO (pronounced “oh”), and the new lo-fi dance sensation Grimes.

While everyone else with the means to grab tickets to the Flaming Lips show on the opening night of Noise Pop Festival was immersed in confetti and balloons. The rest of us Noise Poppers decided to witness The Hold Steady’s lead vocalist Craig Finn hold down the Bottom of the Hill and share his solo material to the sold out crowd. Now I am not a huge Hold Steady fan. I like the 2006 hit album Boys and Girls in America as much as the next guy. There are even a few songs off Separation Sunday and Heaven is Whenever that are pretty good. But I’m not one to actively seek out tickets to see the band. I just can’t relate to the band’s message or “rock party” mentality.

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Kata Rokkar is a place where you can download free mp3 from artists and bands that I currently love and listen to. They are only for sampling purposes and to influence you to go out and support these artists by purchasing their records and going to their concerts. If you are a record company or an artist that is displeased with a song being displayed, feel free to contact me and I will remove it ASAP. Thank you and enjoy!